Articles tagged “priceline”

The Priceline Group? Restaurants? Yes, the agreement to acquire OpenTable is about mobile, and the push by TripAdvisor and now Priceline to fully engage their customers on the go when they are already in a destination -- or when they are traveling for business.

The Priceline Group's culture is fairly buttoned up so the company wouldn't think about doing Airbnb-style apartment rentals at this juncture, but if the legal hassles eventually get sorted out, then Priceline would take a hard look.

The acquisition appears to highlight an effort by the Priceline Group to deepen its involvement with its hotel partners by providing digital marketing services above and beyond selling their rooms online.

Travel industry digital ad spending is heavily skewed toward driving transactions because online travel agencies, which are primarily interested in converting lookers into bookers, are calling the shots.

Was TripAdvisor's CEO Stephen Kaufer worth $39 million in 2013? That amount is a bit of an anomaly as it includes $38 million in stock options, and he won't be eligible for more until the Summer of 2017. Although there are complaints that TripAdvisor gives geographic growth a higher priority than short-term shareholder return, we don't see anyone complaining.

What does Priceline's $1.8 billion acquisition of metasearcher Kayak mean as the first-year anniversary approaches? If you are a big-time online travel agency, you gotta have one. Just ask Expedia, which got its hands on Trivago soon after Priceline made its move on Kayak.

Priceline outlasted Expedia in the room-night growth arms race, posting 32% growth to Expedia's 24%. Although there was a slight dent in the armor, as Priceline room-night growth was slightly faster a year earlier.

The Priceline Group is the dominant online player based on its scale, speed, search engine marketing strategy, and conversion skills, but perhaps its compensation policy should be added to the list of factors, as well.

The Expedia.com homepage redesign is trendy and artsy, with lots of open space and a search widget placed on top of an inspirational photo. Simplicity, photo-led search and responsive design are trending now -- until the next big thing comes along.

We didn't get to fully assess the Routehappy integration into the Priceline iOS app since it is doing so on a test basis, but if it is truly transparent and enables flyers to view ratings, warts and all, then this should be interesting.